ABSTRACT
The aspect markers gin and jyuh attached to verbs express ongoing actions.
The progressive suffix -gin, like the English progressive ‘-ing’, is used for ongoing activities:
KCuih yihga h&g&tii She’s having a meeting KCuihdeih ICuhng go king-ghn-gAi The two of them are chatting
Unlike the English ‘-ing’ in such cases, gAn does not have to be present. Thus the same sentences shown above are also possible without gin (although a sentence particle may be needed in its place: see Unit 25):
KCuih yihg5 h6i-tii wo She’s having a meeting KCuihdeih ICuhng go king-g6i la The two of them are chatting
Although referring most often to the present, verbs with gzin may apply to an activity in the past. In such cases there is typically a past time adverb present to make this clear (see Unit 11; note also the adverb juhng ‘still’):
Gauh lin kCuih juhng duhk-g8n jiinghohk Last year she was still studying in secondary school
KCuihdeih seuhng go yuht juhng paak-gin-ti& yihgi yl%ging f5n-j6shu la
Last month they were still dating, now they’re already separated
Similarly, g6n may be used in subordinate clauses referring to the past:
Ng6h duhk-grin siuhohk ghjahnsih, keuih yl%ging sik ng6h (lit. I studying primary school that time, he already knew me) When I was in primary school, she already knew me
L&h fan-gain-gaau gbjahnsih, y6uh y&hn d&dihnwh Edh (lit. you sleeping that time, somebody telephoned come) Somebody called while you were sleeping
An alternative means of describing an ongoing action is by using htidouh, which literally means ‘to be here/there’:
Ngdh h&douh jouh gtigfo I’m (here) doing homework LCih hhidouh daing bingo a? Who are you waiting for? KCuihdeih hhidouh aai-glau They’re having an argument
Because of the literal meaning ‘here’, it is suitable where the activity is going on in a location close to the speaker. haiidouh and giin can also be used together in expressing progressive meaning:
KCuih hziidouh jyCgin-faahn She’s cooking Lduhbaan hhidouh s&g&seun The boss is writing letters
jyuh added to a verb describes a continuous activity or state without change. It is associated with particular verbs, such as those denoting stationary situations:
Ga dihndianch6 j&jyuh go cheuthaiu The motorbike is blocking the exit
Kduih shhngyaht jti-jyuh fahn bouji She’s always holding a newspaper
Ng6h yaht-yaht deui-jyuh tiihng-yCung y5t bian y&n I face the same bunch of people every day
Certain transitive verbs with jyuh indicate putting something in a state, as with kaim-jyuh ‘cover’ and b&g-jyuh ‘tie up’:
LCih yiu yuhng go goi kiim-jyuh go wok You need to use the top to cover the wok
Kduih yuhng di h6u leng ge ji biau-jyuh fahn liiihmaht She used some nice paper to wrap up the gift
K6uih m6uh baahnfaat b&g-jyuh k6uih 16uhgiing There’s no way she can tie up her husband (physically or
metaphorically)
Note that verb + jyuh can mean something different from the simple verb by itself, such as him-jyuh ‘intend’ vs. him ‘think’, t&jyuh ‘watch over’ vs. thi ‘look, see’:
Ng6h him-jyuh chCng kbuihdeih sihk-faahn I intend to invite them to dinner
L&h taii-jyuh ni I&hug go sailouhjaii, mh6u bCi k6uihdeih dai-g5au Keep an eye on these two kids, (and) don’t let them fight
A verb with jyuh can also be used to describe an action carried out simultaneously with another:
K6uih mohng-jyuh ng6h siu (lit. he watching me smiled) He smiled (while looking) at me
KCuih deui-jyuh ng6h haam (lit. she facing me cried) She cried at (while facing) me
L&h gin-jyuh ng6h hbahng (lit. you following me walk) Walk after (following) me
Note that there is no conjunction linking the two verbs (this is a characteristic of the sequences of verb phrases known as serial verb constructions).
